Here it is Wednesday evening already! I would like to spend more hours in the studio but my back started hurting worse again this week. I’ve been trying for over two years to get it into shape. The arthritis in the thoracic area is pushing on the nerves in my spine. Last fall, after a trip to the ER, I was told nothing could be done that I’m not already doing. I cannot take any pain meds. Some cause stomach trouble, some I’m so sensitive to that I get violently ill and I cannot work in that condition. So I work till it hurts too much. Last night the pain was bad enough that I did not sleep till after two o’clock.
So, I am not making as much progress as I would like. I cannot keep up with the show schedules but I have a couple of things ready that I can still show. I am trying to tie up the loose ends in the studio, paintings that I haven’t finished. Right now I am almost finished with a small portrait of the daughter of our first foreign exchange student. I plan on beginning soon to post one photo every week of the work in progress. I am hoping that Nelly will see this and then I can keep her in suspense as I reveal each one. I hope she will like the end product. She will have to keep in mind, the photos I used as reference were taken when she was here two years ago. I am sure her daughter has matured a lot since then. Our other AFS daughter will have to take some updated photos of her boys for me because I don’t think I’ll be doing a lot of traveling to far away places in the near future. OK, Manu?
I had our youngest daughter post my web site on her face book page. I never had any idea how many people that would reach and also from how far away I would get views. My husband looked at the STATS today, then began to tell me about the special person this had reached, but he couldn’t talk because he was too emotional. It is so good to have even this connection!
Another person said he was inspired to return to his creative process again. Great! If my attempts inspire someone, that gives me inspiration too. My grandmother taught me to count my blessings. That doesn’t just mean when things are going good. As a matter of fact, it is especially important to be grateful in the most difficult times. When I was too busy raising my girls, I didn’t do art but I did other things that I considered important. Now, even at my age, I am able to pick up my dream. I am happy to be creating art, even if it isn’t perfect or up to some critic’s standards. And even though I am not extremely sociable, I do enjoy the shows where artists share encouragement and inspiration. Tomorrow, Bruce and I will be taking the time to drive my uncle to the doctor. He will turn one hundred years old in July and has had some difficulty getting around since he broke his hip in a fall a few months ago. Until then, he was still driving and I was not afraid to be in the car with him. He is very special to me. I’m hoping to do his portrait someday. After we get home, then I’ll get back to the studio and see what I can accomplish. Till next time, Shalom, Diana Feb 26, 2014
Diana Williams Portraits 